Cooperation recruits corticolimbic projections and induces synaptic change in rats
Abstract
Cooperation is typically studied as an output of the social brain, as opposed to an experience that shapes it. Here, we developed a task in rats that permits interaction while requiring joint action for reward. Cooperation depended on partner familiarity and visual access. Anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) to basolateral amygdala (BLA) projections were activated during cooperation with a familiar partner, whereas ACC to anterior insula (AI) projections were simultaneously suppressed regardless of familiarity. Using synaptic vesicle glycoprotein 2A (SV2A) positron emission tomography (PET), we found that a single 90 min cooperative experience increased presynaptic density in the amygdala and insula one day later. Cooperative experience enhanced subsequent responding toward a distressed conspecific, in proportion to the amount of cooperation. Cooperation is thus an experience that recruits dissociable corticolimbic pathways and changes brain and behavior beyond the encounter itself.
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BibTeX
@misc{kietzman2026cooperation,
title = {{Cooperation recruits corticolimbic projections and induces synaptic change in rats}},
author = {Henry W. Kietzman and R. Allie Cauchon and Amelia Johnson and David R. Backer Peral and Robin Bonomi and Yiyun Huang and Hayde Sanchez and Alya Bagdas and Andy Chen and Shreya Saxena and S. William Li and Jane R. Taylor},
howpublished = {bioRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.64898/2026.09.07.749944},
url = {https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.09.07.749944},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Cooperation recruits corticolimbic projections and induces synaptic change in rats
AU - Henry W. Kietzman
AU - R. Allie Cauchon
AU - Amelia Johnson
AU - David R. Backer Peral
AU - Robin Bonomi
AU - Yiyun Huang
AU - Hayde Sanchez
AU - Alya Bagdas
AU - Andy Chen
AU - Shreya Saxena
AU - S. William Li
AU - Jane R. Taylor
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/07
PB - bioRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.09.07.749944
UR - https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.09.07.749944
AB - Cooperation is typically studied as an output of the social brain, as opposed to an experience that shapes it. Here, we developed a task in rats that permits interaction while requiring joint action for reward. Cooperation depended on partner familiarity and visual access. Anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) to basolateral amygdala (BLA) projections were activated during cooperation with a familiar partner, whereas ACC to anterior insula (AI) projections were simultaneously suppressed regardless of familiarity. Using synaptic vesicle glycoprotein 2A (SV2A) positron emission tomography (PET), we found that a single 90 min cooperative experience increased presynaptic density in the amygdala and insula one day later. Cooperative experience enhanced subsequent responding toward a distressed conspecific, in proportion to the amount of cooperation. Cooperation is thus an experience that recruits dissociable corticolimbic pathways and changes brain and behavior beyond the encounter itself.
SN - 2692-8205
ER -